News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-04-28
A STORY OF THE SEA.
AN EYE wTTNEss's ACCOUNT OF AN IN.
sURRECTIoN ON BOARD OF A
SLAVE SHIP.

horrors of the slave traffic in DAYS gon,
oy, but one of the most horrible instance
OF the many which could be related oc
cured under my own eyes, and withth,
most appalling surroundings.
In the last days of the African slave
traffic. mean by this during the las
voyages of the vessels fitted out to bu,
slaves In Africa and land them in Cubs
i was foremast hand on an Englis}
bark called the Foxshire. bound from
Liverpool to the Cape of Good Hone
We had an average fair run, down to the
equator, and there met what nearly every
ship inevitably encounters, light winds.
tedious calms, and deal of work OF
pulling and hauling for the crew. We
were well of the Gulf of Guinea when
even the catspaws left Us, and there set
tied down upon the sea a mighty calm.
We had kept moving q bit up to 10
O'Clock IN the morning, and we had had
IN plain sight for the last twenty-four
hours brig which was making her way
out of the Gulf. We had been all the
time approaching each other at an angle
but very slowly, and when the wind fl
nally left us, the two crafts were bowling
and noddlng at each other on the ground
swell over space of water which could
not have measured more than half a mile.
We had shown her our flag the evening
before, and she had replied by hoistinS
the flag of Spain. Long before the calm
set IN We had our suspicious as to her
character. Indeed, at sundown on the
night before, an old Jack Tar in NV
watch had taken long squint at her
while aloft and had come down to saw:
Lads, if that chap off there isn't a
blackbird, then may choke to death on
my next mouthful of plum duff"
During my trick at the wheel over
heard the Captain and mate criticising
the stranger, and both were firm in their
belief that she was a SLAYER. When the
calm came, as have described, all doubts
were soon settled. The air was tainted
with the horrible odor of a slave ship. 1
affirm that this odor came to us over that
half mile of open water, and it put all
doubts at rest. Among our crew of TWEEN
ty-two people were half a dozen who
had scented slave ships in port, and one
an American, who had made several
voyages. The minute this horrible odor
came to US, he jumped clearo the deck,
gave his leg slap, and cried out:
''Gosh all fish hooks, but here's the
real nigger smell coming right aboard
us That fellow has got 900 of 'em un-
der matches or here's my head for foot
ball.
The smell of slave ship is the most
sickening of all odors. Carrion is not to
be compared with it. The man who got
one good sniff of it at close quarters was
made sick for an hour after. 1 never
could understand how the crews of the
ships could endure it, but as one can
get used to everything, / suppose the
human nose may in time become accus-
toned to the foulest odors. Had our bark
been man-of-war there would have
been fine prize under her bowsprit,
but as we were only a merchantman,
the Spaniard had no reason to fear us.
As a matter of fact he could safely have
been the aggressor, for We could see a
couple of cannon on his decks, while
we had none, and We knew that he was
literally supplied with muskets and cut
lasses while we had none. Captain and
mate each had a revolver, but aside from
those we had not tirearm of any sort. |
We made ont a crew OF sixteen men
aboard the brig, and her general appear
ance indicated that she had not been |
out of port many days.
Well, there we lay, and there was the |
horrible odor in the air, and the sun |
seemed to make the sea boil. Hot
Why, a bare foot placed on the deck
would have been blistered in fifteen
seconds, and out of mercy to the men,
some of whom had stripped off every
thing but trousers, an order came for
ward to suspend all work We drew up
buckets of water and dashed them over
each otf7ef. but as for finding a cool
place or keeping cool, that was out of
the question. AbGat- / o'clock we>were
all startled into activity by y a q most nor
rible din from the brig. 1t seemed as /
if two or three hundred voices We're
yelling in chorus, and the SOUND qua not
cease until broken In upon by the re-
ports of firearms.
place on board that fellow" said the |
American, who had been listening IN
tentIv "He's short of water, and the |
rigoers have been placed on half or
quarter allowance. They are suffering /
and desperate. and the crew have had |
10 shoot down some of the leaders. I've |
seen 200 likely black fellows go dead for
want of water, but they didn't die with
ont a tremendous effort to take the ship. |
Well hear from that chap again in /
hlfte OF an IlOllIg tllIt Il MO- nv
cake if he isn't alongside of us before /
10. bartering for fresh water.
The man was a prophet. In about |
half an hour there was another chorus /
of shrieks. yeIls and curses, and we
plainly heard the rattle OF chains.
Three or four muskets were fired, and
then all was quiet again. But it wasn't
vet II O'Clock when the brig launched a
boat, five men got into her, and IN q |
very few minutes she was alongside,
and a man who announced himself as |
the mate of the SLAYER was on deck.
Everybody knew his erTand. 1t was
well-known that we had plenty of fresh |
water. but would our Captain spare him |
a single pintl British sailors hated
slavers as no nation did, and our Cap
tain had gone about the forenoon with
round oaths falling off his lips to think
that he had SLAYER under his nose and
was helpless. If he refused to spare the
water, the poor blacks would die; if he
let it go, they would be saved for q Life
of slavery. The man who boarded Us
was an American, and he had an open
co1ntenance and q frank way. de
didn'. beat about the bush Ut ai!, bat /